Introduction:
Starbucks is a company that operates with left-wing politics in mind, even more than MSNBC.  I've never been in a Starbucks restaurant, but apparently lots of things happen there, other than coffee sales.  Starbucks has bent over backwards to accommodate homeless bums who only want to use the restrooms without making a purchase.  This effort has, according to some, turned Starbucks into a de facto homeless shelter, because the homeless people have no incentive to leave.  At the same time, Starbucks is often the target of left-wing rioters, who see Starbucks as a symbol of successful capitalism, much like McDonald's.

The CEO works remotely, but Starbucks employees need to be in the office 3 days a week come January.  Starbucks has informed its corporate employees that they could get fired if they do not come back to the office three days a week.  According to reporting by Bloomberg, the company will introduce a "standardized process" starting in January to ensure compliance with this return-to-office policy.  This move represents stricter enforcement of Starbucks' hybrid work policy, which has been in place for less than two months since Brian Niccol became CEO.  Niccol previously mentioned that while employees should work wherever they are most productive, he believes that place is typically the office.

Starbucks joins Amazon in wisely threatening to fire selfish employees who won't return to the office.  Good news for Starbucks corporate employees hoping to avoid a return to the workplace.  They can stay home permanently as a former Starbucks employee if they don't return to the workplace in January.  This is a wise move for the struggling coffee giant.  A memo leaked to Bloomberg News shows Starbucks management promising to discipline employees who refuse to return to the office, "up to, and including, separation."  The move comes as new CEO Brian Niccol announced an end to the remote work policy implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Starbucks Has a Problem but I Can Deliver the Solution in 30 Minutes or It's Free.  It takes a lot more time to order a much more expensive drink at your typical Starbucks.  Customers are starting to notice, and the Wall Street Journal reported last week that new CEO Brian Niccol has "his work cut out for him" to restore the firm's sagging share price and win back customers who say that the price of a half-double decaffeinated half-caf with a twist of lemon is no longer "a deal in any sense of the word."  Maybe Niccol should look to a pizza chain for inspiration, but stick a pin in that thought for just a moment.  Niccol was brought in earlier this month to replace Laxman Narasimhan, who didn't even last two years as the company's chief executive officer.  Narasimhan proved ineffective at fighting the trends working against the chain like high prices and changing customer habits.  China was supposed to be the next big growth market but, in the previous quarter, "same-store sales plunged 11% with an 8% decline in the average order."

I can't tell what this means, except that Starbucks is involved.
Supreme Court, siding with Starbucks, makes it harder for NLRB to win court orders in labor disputes.  The Supreme Court on Thursday made it harder for the federal government to win court orders when it suspects a company of interfering in unionization campaigns in a case that stemmed from a labor dispute with Starbucks.  The justices tightened the standards for when a federal court should issue an order to protect the jobs of workers during a union organizing campaign.  The court rejected a rule that some courts had applied to orders sought by the National Labor Relations Board in favor of a higher threshold, sought by Starbucks, that must be met in most other fights over court orders, or injunctions.  The NLRB had argued that the National Labor Relations Act, the law that governs the agency, has for more than 75 years allowed courts to grant temporary injunctions if they find requests "just and proper."  The agency said the law doesn't require it to prove other factors and was intended to limit the role of the courts.

Starbucks' political activism has backfired.  For an American company to build and maintain a customer base, it must choose one of two courses: either be apolitical and serve all Americans, or be political in a single consistent direction and serve only some (like Ben & Jerry's).  It cannot be political in all directions at once, or in different directions at different times as fashions or the caprices of company leadership dictate.  If it does, it halfway alienates all its customers which, in a competitive market, is as good as alienating them entirely.  This is what is gradually happening with Starbucks, where it has been reported that "trouble is brewing" at the company over a price hike on its drinks as well as fights over unionisation and protests against the company's Israel stance.  For years, Starbucks tried to be all things to all people, which served it well in its product and experience portfolio.  The corporation offers olive oil-laced "oleato" coffees and Starbucks Reserve stores for the connoisseur, pink drinks for the young and hip, and then just plain old coffee for the ordinary folks.

Starbucks Is in Trouble.  Generally we do not celebrate coming hardship for anyone.  Americans will be affected by this if The Economic Ninja and Zero Hedge are correct.  With that said, bad coffee by a woke company could only head in the negative direction eventually.  That eventuality may be upon them.

Starbucks On Brink Of Worst Crash Since Dot Com After "Stunning" Earnings Miss.  Starbucks shares plummeted by 16% during the early cash session, approaching the -16.2% level last seen during the Covid crash.  If intraday losses surpass 16.2% and remain above this level at closing, it would mark the company's worst single-day loss since the Dot Com crash in early 2000.  "Starbucks reported what's perhaps the worst set of results of any large company so far" this quarter, analyst Adam Crisafulli of Vital Knowledge wrote in a note.  William Blair downgraded the coffee chain, citing last quarter's "stunning across-the-board miss on all key metrics."

Starbucks attempts to tamp down the noise.  In a bid to create a more pleasant and inclusive experience for its patrons, Starbucks is rolling out a series of technological renovations across its U.S. locations, including Western Washington.  The coffee giant aims to reduce noise levels and enhance accessibility through strategic changes.  Starbucks North America President Sara Trilling said noise reduction would also improve order accuracy and the overall customer experience, Bloomberg reported.  She said employees can struggle to hear orders correctly because of a noisy environment.

Christian woman says Starbucks fired her for refusing to use transgender people's pronouns: 'It is against my faith to lie'.  A Christian woman has come forward to say Starbucks fired her for refusing to use transgender people's pronouns.  The woman in question — Taylor Marie Trice of North Carolina — spoke to Sarah Fields of the Publica about her ordeal, which occurred in 2022.  Earlier this week, Trice uploaded a video to TikTok discussing what happened: "June came around, and as we all know, June is the month of 'tasting the rainbow.'  And I had been working at Starbucks for about two years at that point.  So I was used to Starbucks putting up their [Pride] decorations and stuff during the month of June.  And throughout that time, no one had ever made a complaint about me being homophobic, transphobic, whatever."  Trice added in the clip that she's "not judging" her fellow employees but that her stance was, "I'm just not about to go along with everything you want to do if it doesn't go along with God's word."

Starbucks Bathroom Horror:  Police Arrest Man Who filmed Over 90 Victims.  According to reports, a man allegedly installed a hidden camera inside the restrooms of a California Starbucks.  The camera was found underneath the sink by an employee facing the toilet at Starbucks on January 31.  Police described Louie Juarez Jr., 35, as a 'violent predator' who allegedly filmed over 90 victims in restrooms before he was arrested on Friday [3/22/2024].

Students pushing for schools to bar Starbucks from campuses.  Rallies occurred at 25 campuses across the country to protest Starbucks being on school grounds after the company failed to negotiate contracts with the thousands of baristas who've unionized over the last two years.  Protesters sent petitions to 25 schools, ranging from Georgetown to UCLA to Wisconsin to UNC, claiming unless the coffee retail giant changes its labor practices, the chain should be banned from campuses.  There is no word yet if any Washington colleges are on the list.

Lawsuit claims Starbucks misled consumers on origins of '100% ethical' coffee, tea.  A leading U.S. consumer advocacy group filed a lawsuit against Starbucks, alleging the ubiquitous coffee chain misled consumers by claiming its brewed products are produced from "100% ethical" sources.  The National Consumers League announced the legal claim in a statement Wednesday, citing "widespread evidence the company relies on farms and cooperatives that commit egregious labor and human rights violations."

Idolatry:
Man Jumps The Counter At Starbucks And Steals A Box Of Stanley Cups That Are Selling For Almost 500 Bucks Each On eBay.  A limited-edition Stanley cup released in collaboration with Starbucks is causing mayhem at Target stores[,] with fans lining up overnight and fights breaking out in some locations.  The shimmery pink version of the Stanley Quencher[,] an insulated tumbler that has proved a hit on social media[,] was released Wednesday.  People have flocked to Target stores across the US to get their hands on the $49.95 cup.  The cups are now selling on third party site eBay for as much as $299.99[,] with some users listing the item for as much as $550.  According to videos posted online, there have also been fights breaking out in stores over the tumbler.

Thousands of Starbucks Employees Walk Off the Job, Leave Company Hanging.  Thousands of Starbucks employees, steamed up over working conditions, walked off the job Thursday at more than 200 stores nationwide during one of the chain's busiest days of the year.  The one-day strike brought a Christmas crunch to stores during Red Cup Day, an annual promotion in which stores issue a red reusable cup to customers who purchase items from the holiday menu, the Washington Post reported.  Workers carrying signs with slogans like "No Contract, No Coffee" made demands regarding their working conditions, particularly staffing and scheduling during promotional events like Red Cup Day.

Woke Starbucks Just Got Slammed By A Major Lawsuit.  Starbucks is one of the country's largest coffee shop chains.  It is also a company that has long been embroiled in social/political controversy.  From holiday cups to social justice, the Seattle-based corporation has been blasted by Americans for pushing "woke" ideology.  But recently, its support of progressive causes came back to hurt it: the company allowed its workers to form a union, called Starbucks Workers United, and the aggressive logo of the group evokes the idea of BLM/Marxist leaning.  The company was shocked when chapters of this union posted attacks against Israel after it went to war with Hamas.  Starbucks sued the union, demanding it change its name and logo.  In response, the union turned on its employer.

AOC-Backed Starbucks Union Cheers for Hamas Terror Attacks.  As armed Hamas terrorists are beheading Jewish babies, raping innocent women, and executing civilians in the street, Starbucks union workers — backed by far-left Squad member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-VT), socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and brain-dead Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) — have proudly signaled public support for the terrorist invasion of Israel.  Starbucks Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), voiced "Solidarity with Palestine!" in a series of since-deleted posts across social media.  Over the weekend, Starbucks union chapters in progressive strongholds, such as Iowa City, Chicago, and Boston, promoted "Long Live Palestinian Resistance" rallies supporting the Hamas attacks.

Starbucks Union Backed By Prominent Dems Claims 'Solidarity With Palestine' After Hamas Terror Attack.  A Starbucks labor union with past ties to prominent members of the Democratic Party expressed "solidarity" with the people group that backed an unprecedented terrorist attack on Israel.  A social media account for Starbucks Workers United posted "Solidarity with Palestine!" following the deadliest terror attack on Israeli soil in the nation's history, according to The Washington Free Beacon.  The attack was carried out by Hamas, an Iran-backed terror group elected to lead Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.  The attack left over 1,200 civilians dead and thousands wounded, marking the deadliest single day for Jews since the Holocaust.  The union has since deleted the post, made on X, formerly known as Twitter, according to the Free Beacon, which captured a screenshot of the image.  Starbucks Workers United is an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and represents roughly 9,000 baristas.

Starbucks announces seven store closures in San Francisco.  Critics question why.  Coffee chain Starbucks announced that it will be closing seven stores in San Francisco later this month, as first reported by the San Francisco Business Times.  Northern California Regional Vice-President Jessica Borton sent an email, obtained by USA TODAY, to district managers on Oct. 2 stating that the closures came as a result of, "a standard process of evaluating our store portfolio annually."  The email did not specify the reasons for the store closures and noted, "We remain dedicated to investing in the city in meaningful and important ways that meet our partners and customers where they are."  The company has opened three locations in Downtown San Francisco and is renovating four locations, according to a company spokesperson.

Even Starbucks Is Failing in Crime-Ridden San Francisco.  First, Whole Foods closed and now Starbucks is shuttering a slew of locations in San Francisco.  The Seattle coffee giant announced Tuesday that it would close seven of its 59 locations in the city, effective Oct. 22.  The city's "doom loop" is speeding up.  Starbucks didn't mention crime in its official reason for leaving the City by the Bay.  "There are several factors Starbucks considers when tasked with the tough decision of closing a store, but it is all part of ensuring a healthy store portfolio," Jessica Borton, Starbucks' regional vice president for Northern California, said in a statement to district managers.  That corporate-speak doesn't say much, but it's hard not to think that crime and the city's deteriorating street conditions didn't play a major factor in this wide-scale shutdown.  Starbucks has been known to jump into woke causes, then dodge woke consequences.  It's not surprising to see the coffee chain go mum on the crime issue.

St. Louis Starbucks Barista Filmed Himself Pumping Whipped Cream Into His Diaper.  A Starbucks barista in Ballwin with a purported diaper fetish was put on blast today for allegedly stuffing whipped cream down their [sic] diaper from behind a Starbucks counter.  Social media trolls Libs of TikTok posted video of the action on Twitter on Friday.  [Video clip]

Violent Gay [Black] Dude Attacks Starbucks Barista In NYC.  This gay guy with no pride and his two a-hole friends have been going around NYC and harassing establishments.  They came into this Starbucks and started trouble, throwing straws before throwing some fists at the ladies behind the counter.  Let's hope karma catches up with them.  [Video clip]

Thousands of Starbucks workers across 150 stores to strike over Pride decorations.  Some 3,500 unionized Starbucks employees began walking out Friday [6/23/2023] as part of a rolling nationwide strike at 150 restaurants to protest what they say is Starbucks' policy of removing Pride decorations from its stores.  Starbucks has denied the claims by Starbucks Workers United that the Seattle-based coffee giant banned in-store Pride decorations during Pride Month.  Starbucks Workers United union said earlier this month the company took down Pride Month decorations and flags at several stores, while some workers took to social media to report the same.

More than 150 Starbucks stores with 3,500 workers are set to go on stike 'over treatment of LGBTQ employees'.  More than 150 Starbucks stores with 3,500 workers are set to go on strike next week after a union representing the baristas claimed the company ordered them to take down Pride decorations.  The Starbucks Workers United union previously accused the coffee giant of caving into backlash and failing 'to materially support the LGBTQ+ community' earlier this month.  It said executives had 'banned' stores from displaying rainbow flags and decorations halfway through Pride Month.

Former Starbucks manager awarded $25.6M in anti-white race discrimination lawsuit.  After determining that Starbucks had infringed upon Shannon Phillips' federal civil rights and violated New Jersey's laws against racial discrimination, the jury ruled in favor of the former manager.  They awarded Phillips $25 million in punitive damages and an additional $600,000 in compensatory damages.

Starbucks manager wins $25.6 million lawsuit after arguing she was fired for being White.  A Starbucks regional manager won a $25.6 million verdict Friday after she accused the corporation of firing her for being White in response to a national backlash over the arrest of two Black men at one of its Philadelphia cafes.  A New Jersey federal jury decided in favor of Shannon Phillips, who sued Starbucks in 2019 over allegations of racial bias and discrimination, according to court filings.  It took the eight-member panel nearly five hours to award $25 million in punitive damages and $600,000 in compensatory damages to Phillips, determining that her skin color played a decisive role in her termination.

Starbucks Boots PRIDE Decor From Stores Halfway Through PRIDE Month.  An activist group accused coffee retailer Starbucks of dialing back the LGBTQ-themed decor — with two weeks still left to go of PRIDE month — but Starbucks is denying the claim.  According to a Twitter thread shared by Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) — "Starbucks Partners coming together to create a better workplace" — management in a number of Starbucks franchises have opted to tone down PRIDE displays all across the United States.

Starbucks goes full Bud Light in India with commercial promoting trans ideology.  In a startling example of cultural imperialism, coffee colossus Starbucks is promoting transsexualism in India, with a slickly-produced 2-minute video ad.  [Tweet] [...] There already is some backlash against Starbucks, but because its product is mainly consumed by wealthy, young members of the elite, there may not be a big penalty to pay at the cash register.  We'll see.

Trans Lunatic Starbucks Barista Kicks Out Woman For Misgendering Him.  Transgender Starbucks Employee screams at a woman for misgendering him, then proceeds to violently assault a man filming the altercation in the UK.  [Video clip]

[Black] Woman Assaults [White] Starbucks Barista Because She Made Her Latte Wrong.  [Video clip]

Starbucks workers begin 3-day walkout at 100 US stores.  Starbucks workers around the U.S. are planning a three-day strike starting Friday as part of their effort to unionize the coffee chain's stores.  More than 1,000 baristas at 100 stores are planning to walk out, according to Starbucks Workers United, the labor group organizing the effort.  The strike will be the longest in the year-old unionization campaign.  The union says it expects the strike will shutter some stores entirely; at others, managers or other workers may keep the stores open.

"Red Cup Rebellion" To Disrupt Starbucks Stores As Baristas Go On Strike.  Starbucks workers at more than 100 US stores plan to walk off the job Thursday in a labor action during one of the coffee giant's busiest days of the year, WaPo reported.  More than 2,000 members of the Starbucks Workers Union (SWU) in 25 states, covering 112 stores across the country, will be participating in what is called the "Red Cup Rebellion."

Canal Street Starbucks closing over safety concerns for staff.  Starbucks announced Friday [9/16/2022] that it would be closing its Canal Street store permanently on October 3 over safety and security concerns for its employees.  Sam Jefferies, a Starbucks spokesperson, called the coffee shop on the corner of Canal Street and St.  Charles Avenue "a high incident store."  "Our stores are windows into America, and every day, our partners witness the challenges facing our communities — challenges to personal safety and security, racism, a growing mental health crisis, and issues magnified by COVID.  These challenges play out within our stores — affecting our partners, our communities, and our customers alike," Jefferies said.

The Editor says...
If I may be permitted to translate into plain English, the store at issue is located in the ghetto, and a great many violent and/or insane homeless black people have been entering the store to steal, vandalize, defecate, and disrupt.  The store is not a "window into America."  It is a glimpse of Hell.

Suddenly, mail-in voting can't be trusted!
Starbucks calls for halt of mail-in voting for union elections.  Seattle-based Starbucks has requested that the National Labor Relations Board temporarily suspend mail-in-voting in union elections over allegations that labor board personnel coordinated with union representatives to improperly influence voting.  In a Monday letter to the chairman and general counsel of the NLRB, Starbucks alleges "highly improper, systemic misconduct" and that board agents secretly coordinated with union agents in a concerted effort to "tip the scales" in favor of the union in an election at an Overland, Kansas location.

'Woke' NYC Starbucks now a haven for junkies, drunks and homeless.  A NoHo Starbucks is dealing with more than just a constant flow of caffeine junkies looking to get their fix.  The café at the corner of Astor Place and Lafayette Street regularly contends with drug users, mentally disturbed people and homeless folks looking to take a nap, The [New York] Post witnessed.  "Starbucks got too woke too fast," said java joint regular Constantine Dobryakov.  "Now some customers are too scared to go in because you've got a bunch of homeless people sleeping in there.  They got to be ready to kick people out and not give everyone a free cup of coffee.  You give them a finger and they'll take a hand."  This past week, The Post saw homeless people nodding off, washing their hair in a public sink and being transported to the hospital from the recently unionized Starbucks.

Starbucks CEO Blames Woke Elected Officials For 16 Store Closures In Dangerous Cities.  Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz placed blame on woke elected officials in Democrat-run cities for the abrupt closure of 16 stores located primarily on the West Coast.  On Tuesday, The Wall Street Journal was the first to report that six locations each will shut down in Seattle and Los Angeles, in addition to two in Portland, Ore., one in Philadelphia, and one in Washington, D.C., by August.  The company cited repeated safety incidents behind its decision.  Leaked footage of Schultz at an internal meeting, published by The Post Millennial's Ari Hoffman on Thursday, revealed the coffee-chain executive blaming elected officials for an environment in which it's too hostile to operate.

Starbucks will permanently close 16 of its stores in woke cities across the US after staff are accosted by customers high on drugs.  Starbucks is shuttering more than a dozen stores due to reports of rife drug use and disturbances by brazen members of the public at the popular cafés.  The planned closures, announced Monday, will see 16 stores closed in several cities across the country — all set in left-leaning locales.  The reported disruptions include drug use by paying customers and, more often than not, members of the public — who often take advantage of the company's open bathroom policy, which allows nonpaying patrons to use their facilities.

Citing crime concerns, Starbucks announces closure of 5 of its Seattle coffee stores.  Higher crime rates and safety concerns have prompted Starbucks to close several of its coffee shops in Seattle and Everett, the company said Monday.  Five stores in Seattle are slated to close their doors, including prominent locations in the Central District, Westlake Center, Capitol Hill, Roosevelt and Union Station, with a total of 16 shops around the U.S. slated to shut down by July 31.  Starbucks says the stores were chosen based on their level of crime and whether crime rates could be lowered.

Starbucks may finally be returning to a good business practice.  Ah, Starbucks.  Were a visitor from another planet to visit the United States, he might well conclude there was a law that there must be a Starbucks on every street in the country.  Overpriced, oversweetened, a hangout for the homeless, and a bastion of liberal sentiment, it might seem to the alien visitor that Starbucks needs such a law just to stay in business.  Starbucks is a place where the bizarre is common.  There was comedian Hotep Jesus, who was treated like royalty when he went into a Starbucks to demand "reparations coffee" because Black Lives Matter.  There was the campaign where baristas were asked to write the words "Race Together" on coffee cups to encourage customers to talk about race.  There was the message from CEO Howard Schultz supporting DACA and refugees, a stance that seems particularly strange considering how badly the company treats its employees.

Starbucks reconsidering open bathroom policy due to safety fears:  CEO Schultz.  Starbucks is considering an end to the "open bathroom" policy at its stores due to mounting concerns about public safety, CEO Howard Schultz said.  Schultz said Starbucks was exploring whether to alter the policy, which allows non-customers to use store bathrooms, due to a nationwide "mental health" problem that was posing difficulties for the coffeehouse chains' employees.  "There is an issue of, just, safety in our stores, in terms of people coming in who use our stores as a public bathroom," Schultz said during a New York Times DealBook event Thursday.  "We have to provide a safe environment for our people and our customers.  The mental health crisis in the country is severe, acute and getting worse."  "We have to harden our stores and provide safety for our people," Schultz added.  "I don't know if we can keep our bathrooms open.

Starbucks Exits Russia.  Why Not China?  In solidary with the Ukrainian people, and to put a punctuation mark on its opposition to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Starbucks is closing it's 130 stores in Russia.  The global coffee retailer joins a list of nearly 330 companies that have likewise pulled business from Russia, per Investopedia, March 10.  But at last check, none of these enterprises are dropping out of China.  Anyone who loves freedom and stands for human rights should wonder why.

Climate-Conscious Oscar Nom Glues Himself to Starbucks Counter so Minorities Can Finally Afford Fake Milk.  A Hollywood star is sticking it to Starbucks.  Actor James Cromwell [...] recently came upon a sweet way to cream the coffee company.  As it turns out, the chain charges extra for plant-based milk.  This heated PETA member James, so he percolated a plan.  In order to stop Starbucks from choosing their preferred charging scheme, the 82-year-old glued himself to a New York City cafe's counter — that'll teach 'em.  From there — because, given the glue, he couldn't do it from anywhere else — he read a prepared statement.

Actor James Cromwell Crazy Glued [Himself] To A Starbucks Counter For Charging Extra Money For Vegan Milk.  James Cromwell, "Succession" actor and honorary director of PETA, superglued himself to a Starbucks counter in New York City on Tuesday.  Cromwell glued his hand to the counter at a Midtown, Manhattan location to call on Starbucks to stop charging extra for vegan milk.  PETA, which stands for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, live-streamed the "glue-in" on Facebook.

Howard Schultz prods Starbucks managers to step up 'union busting' in leaked video.  Starbucks' billionaire boss Howard Schultz blasted the organized labor drive at his company as an "outside force" as the Seattle-based coffee chain sees more store workers vote to join unions.  Newly leaked video obtained by the pro-labor news site More Perfect Union shows Schultz — who retook the reins as interim CEO last month — and another top executive denying allegations that the company is engaged in union-busting.  Rossann Williams, Starbucks' president for North America, told the managers in the same video that it is "your No. 1 responsibility" to convince employees to vote.

Starbucks CEO to unionizing baristas:  'Why don't you go somewhere else?'.  Interim Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz reportedly lashed out at a coffee chain barista who was leading a unionization drive at one of the company's California locations, telling the worker:  "If you hate Starbucks so much, why don't you go somewhere else?"  The alleged encounter between Schultz and the 25-year-old barista, Madison Hall, took place at Long Beach Airport on Friday, Hall has claimed.  Schultz, 68, has embarked on a tour of Starbucks locations nationwide in an apparent bid to dissuade his employees from voting to join unions, according to the pro-union news site More Perfect Union.

Starbucks to phase out its iconic disposable cups.  Starbucks recently announced that it will gradually phase out its iconic disposable cup in favor of reusable mugs.  The Seattle-based chain claims it is aiming to "create a cultural movement towards reusables" by 2025 — by coercing the public into getting their drinks in reusable containers rather than single-use paper and plastic cups.  (Starbucks had previously discontinued the use of plastic straws, replacing them with toddler-style sippy cup lids back in 2020.  Yay!)  Michael Kobori, Starbucks's "chief sustainability officer," stated:  "Our cup is ubiquitous, and we love that.  But it is also this ubiquitous symbol of a throwaway society."  Meaning the existing cups don't always end up in recycling bins.  The coffee chain behemoth will be instituting "borrow a cup" and/or "bring your own mug" programs.  Starbucks customers will soon be able to use their own reusable mugs at every Starbucks store in the U.S. and Canada, regardless of what beverage they order... even if they pay ahead or use the drive-through.  The company is also considering allowing customers to "borrow" a reusable mug or cup from the store by paying, say, a $1 deposit, which would be refunded with the vessel's return.  The java outlets will install washing stations for the reusable cups — perhaps next to the disposable needle boxes located near the bathrooms that drug addicts frequent since the company directed its employees to consider anyone who enters a Starbucks a "customer," whether or not they intend to make a purchase.  Unsurprisingly, this policy led to throngs of homeless drug addicts lounging around many a Starbucks outlet.

Starbucks's Multimillion-Dollar Anti-Union Effort May Have Backfired.  The last two months have seen a veritable whirlwind of labor activism at Starbucks.  Workers at more than 100 Starbucks stores in 26 states have now filed for union elections.  In response, the company has bombarded workers with anti-union text messages; launched a slick anti-union website; forced workers to attend mandatory "captive audience" meetings; tried to pack bargaining units with newly hired employees who are trained separate from pro-union workers; threatened to close newly unionized stores in Buffalo, New York; and allegedly sacked pro-union workers at stores in Memphis, Tennessee, and elsewhere.  At least 30 attorneys from Starbucks's law firm, anti-union giant Littler Mendelson, have sought to delay elections and contested workers' right to vote in store-by-store bargaining units, arguing that Starbucks would fare better in large units composed of multiple stores and will benefit from election delay.  These often-effective tactics have become a standard feature of corporate anti-union campaigns over the past 50 years.

Starbucks Store in NY Becomes First to Unionize.  That overpriced pumpkin-spice-and-soy-milk macchiato from a surly, over-pierced, henna-tattooed barista is about to get even more expensive for some upstate New Yorkers.  Starbucks workers at a store in Buffalo, New York, voted to unionize on Thursday, a first for the 50-year-old coffee retailer in the U.S. and the latest sign that the labor movement is stirring after decades of decline.  It may be a sign of things to come as other virtue-signaling companies capitulate to the cycle of sky-high inflation during the Biden administration.

Starbucks launches aggressive anti-union effort as upstate New York stores organize.  Will Westlake, a Starbucks barista in Hamburg, New York, whose store recently filed for a union election, was told by a manager he could attend an earlier mandatory anti-union meeting on 8 November because he was scheduled to work early the next day.  The meeting was in a nearby hotel and when Westlake arrived he found out he was the only worker in attendance, with six members of Starbucks management.  The meeting lasted for about one hour.  "That was basically how my last anti-union meeting was, totally separated from the rest of my co-workers and having to be surrounded," said Westlake.  "They started off by going around and saying that they wanted me to vote no for the union.  And then they went back and forth talking about how great all the benefits are at Starbucks and if we vote in a union, we may not have any of those benefits."

Starbucks worker contracts hepatitis A, possibly exposing thousands.  A New Jersey Starbucks employee who handled food tested positive for hepatitis A, prompting fears that "thousands" may have been exposed to the highly contagious liver disease.  The incident occurred at the Starbucks outlet at 1490 Blackwood Clementon Road in Gloucester Township, where the food handler had reportedly worked multiple days this month while contagious.  The department was notified of the infection on Nov. 17, whereupon it inspected and then subsequently shuttered the coffee shop — despite finding no evidence of food safety violations.  "The county health department has been working closely with the patient and the staff at the Starbucks to address the situation," Camden County Health Officer Paschal Nwako said in a statement.  "The patient is not currently working, and close contacts have been identified."

Whites need not apply.
Best Buy commits up to $10M investment towards BIPOC startups.  Best Buy is continuing to build its investments towards supporting Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) entrepreneurs, as the company announced on Thursday an investment up to $10 million with Brown Venture Group.  The venture capital firm focuses exclusively on Black, Latinx and Indigenous technology startups in emerging technologies.  The Minnesota-based company notes that BIPOC entrepreneurs can face barriers as well as a lack of access to funding, and stated this move will help "empower the next generation within the tech industry."

Target joins Walmart, Chipotle and Starbucks in offering 100 percent free college tuition and textbooks in bid to attract workers.  Target will offer its workers free tuition and textbooks at more than 40 colleges starting this fall, joining other major corporations offering similar benefits to attract workers as pandemic unemployment benefits are scheduled to run out next month.  The Minneapolis-based retailer said Wednesday that it plans to spend $200 million over the next four years on free undergraduate and associate degrees for its part-time and full-time workers in the US, including those on their first day on the job.  Its partner institutions include Morehouse College, the University of Arizona, Oregon State University, the University of Denver, eCornell and Paul Quinn College.

Starbucks memo lists 25 items that could disappear from some stores as the chain struggles to fix supply chain issues.  Many Starbucks stores are facing shortages of vital products, and the issues could be getting worse.  Starbucks is putting orders for at least 25 items on "temporary hold" as of June 4 due to supply chain issues, according to an internal company update viewed by Insider.  "Starbucks will put a temporary hold on production until supply chain issues are resolved," the posting says.  The list, confirmed by three Starbucks employees in Arizona, Georgia, and Oregon, includes popular items like hazelnut syrup, toffee nut syrup, chai tea bags, green iced tea, and other products.

Starbucks and their customers deserve each other.
Starbucks 'Edward' speaks out after his crazy order goes viral.  There is absolutely no shame in Edward's Starbucks ordering game.  Drinking in his newfound fame since his Venti Caramel Crunch Frappe with five bananas, seven pumps of caramel syrup, extra whip and more went viral last week, legendary Starbucks customer "Edward" doesn't see anything wrong with making baristas whip up his super-specific specialty drink — even though the barista who posted his outlandish order online as a joke got fired from the café.  "I don't see a reason why I wouldn't order a drink like this again," Edward, who declined to give his last name, told The [New York] Post of the $14 beverage.

Starbucks 'is considering quitting Facebook and its page with 35 million followers because of the 'hate speech' responses to its posts.  Starbucks is reportedly considering closing its Facebook page as a result of the 'hateful comments' in response to some of their posts.  An internal memo, obtained by Buzzfeed, showed concern within Starbucks at the rhetoric on the site.  Starbucks mainly posts information about their beverages on the page, which is followed by 35 million people — but they also respond to social issues, such as the conviction of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd, and the wave of anti-Asian attacks.

Antifa militants smash up original Starbucks during anti-Biden protest.  They really don't want Joe.  Antifa militants chanted [against] President Biden during a rampage through Seattle after the inauguration — and smashed up the historic site of the very first Starbucks.  Seattle cops made at least three arrests as at least 100 protesters scrawled graffiti, smashed windows and even set fire to an American flag, according to the Seattle Times.  Videos showed the mob chanting their allegiance to "Antifa" and repeatedly decrying the election of a left-wing president, Biden.

Starbucks fired NJ barista for refusing to wear 'Pride' shirt, lawsuit claims.  A New Jersey woman was fired by Starbucks for refusing to wear a "Pride" T-shirt because of her religious beliefs, a lawsuit alleges.  Betsy Fresse, a Christian from Newark, who started working as a Starbucks barista in December 2015, alleged in a suit filed last week that she was "assured" by managers that her faith wouldn't be an issue after transferring to a store in Glen Ridge early last year.  But months later, during a meeting in a manager's office in June 2019, Fresse noticed a box of Starbucks' Pride shirts on a desk.  She then asked if she'd be required to wear one, which would be "tantamount to forced speech" because she believes marriage is defined by the Bible as between "one man and one woman only," the lawsuit states.

Why Christians Should Boycott Starbucks.  [Scroll down]  People need to be aware that there are organizations out there to kill people.  Planned parenthood is one of the worst.  Many Christians don't understand that they are indirectly promoting the killing of babies.  If you know that a cup of coffee that you bought indirectly was funding Planned Parenthood would you buy that cup of coffee?  Starbucks has notoriously been a company to attack Christian principles.  The former CEO and majority shareholder of Starbucks publicly suggested he did not mind alienating Christians.  In response to a shareholder's question about the companies full-throated support for homosexual "marriage," CEO Howard Schultz responded by saying "it's a free country, you can sell your shares in Starbucks and buy shares in another company."  Starbucks donates money to Planned Parenthood and it is documented.

ANTIFA Destroys Starbucks As They Block Police From Making Arrests In Seattle.  A group of ANTIFA attacked a Starbucks in Seattle, shattering the coffee shop's windows and then setting off fireworks inside the building.  Police arrived at the scene and ordered the rioters to disperse.  Black-clad protesters threw rocks and other projectiles at the business, while others used implements to destroy the windowed storefront.  Video footage shows rioters lighting firecrackers and tossing them into the building.  [Video clip]

Antifa mob attacks Starbucks in Seattle.  Virtue signaling and political contributions to progressives haven't bought any immunity from the mob for Seattle-based Starbucks.  The global retail powerhouse offering strong coffee and caloric, caffeine-laced milkshakes has long been among the friendliest allies of progressive politics.  Last June, after BLM mobs raged, destroying swaths of Minneapolis and other cities, the chain didn't merely permit its baristas to wear BLM t-shirts, it actually distributed a quarter million of them to be worn at work. [...] Political engagement flows from the top down, with its former CEO Howard Schultz even toying with running for president before finally endorsing Joe Biden.

Starbucks Slur:  Employee fired for writing anti-police message on drink.  A Starbucks employee has been fired for being too "fired up," literally, writing the message "defund the police" on a customer's order, according to the New York Post.  Photos of the three drinks — which boasted labels bearing the message — were posted on Facebook Sunday by Raseac Eibbed, who said her ex-husband had purchased the beverages from a Starbucks on Interstate 10 and Kirkwood Road.  Eibbed said she called the manager to complain about the incident, but that the woman "acted like she couldn't care less."

Starbucks barista teaches how to make poisonous 'Blue Lives Matter' drink.  Pranks have turned more and more deadly in recent months as many, in particular radical leftist youths and young adults, have started ramping up efforts to engage in full-blown murder.  Law enforcement officers are often their targets, as was the case with a barista who made a video showing how to put together a poisonous "Blue Lives Matter" drink.  The barista, identified as Van Greyson Hart, is seen in the video demonstrating how to mix a lethal dose of bleach with other ingredients to make it look like a standard Starbucks drink.  According to Starbucks, the Target in which Hart works is licensing the brand and directly employs Hart.

The Editor says...
"Licensing the brand" is no defense.  If you permit a franchise owner (after recieving a hefty fee) to use your well-establish brand name to lure customers, you share in the responsibility for whatever happens in that franchised location.  I was in a jury pool once, and one of the defense lawyers tried to play this card, and when it became clear that I wasn't buying it, I was excused.

Black Lives Matter protesters smash NYC Starbucks window in stunning video.  Manhattan business owners vented anger and frustration Saturday [9/5/2020] as they surveyed the damage and cleaned up another mess caused by riotous members of Black Lives Matter, whose protest the night before devolved into a lawless rampage of destruction through the Big Apple.  "I'm sick of this [...]!" raged Kevin McGrath, owner of the Five Points Academy boxing gym across the street from a beseiged Starbucks at Lafayette and Grand streets in Soho.  The java giant was among several businesses damaged Friday night by BLM demonstrators during a planned protest march north from Foley Square to Chelsea and across to Flatiron, resulting in what authorities said was $100,000 in damage to stores and banks.

Man Wanted For Apparently Punching Starbucks Barista Over Mask Policy; Tip Jar Reportedly Stolen.  Police asked for the public's help Friday to identify a man they say punched a barista over what may have been a dispute over the chain's face mask policy.  The assault happened at a Starbucks on West Avenue I in Lancaster.  According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, a man punched a barista when employees asked him to put on a mask as he entered the coffee shop.

'Arrogant' Starbucks worker was 'bragging' about spitting in cops' drinks, police say.  Now he and his nose ring are facing charges.  A Starbucks worker in in Park Ridge, New Jersey, was "arrogant enough to be bragging about" spitting in the drinks of police officers, Chief Joseph Madden told NJ.com Tuesday [7/21/2020] — which led police to question him.  Police said Kevin A. Trejo, 21, admitted to the spitting, the outlet reported — and he lost his job and got the book thrown at him.

Protesters in Seattle gathered outside Starbuck's original store to demand the company drops funding for police federation.  Protesters in Seattle yesterday [7/16/2020] gathered outside Starbuck's original store to demand the coffee giant drops funding for the city's police federation.  In footage from the march, which took place yesterday at Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington, protesters can be heard chanting 'we ain't shopping at Starbucks no more.'  The clip shows a group marching with a banner reading 'Abolish the Police', as they demand Starbucks cut all ties with the Seattle Police Department.

Went Woke, Going Broke — Starbucks Announces Advertising Pause.  After positioning their brand in 2015 as the leading indicator of woke credentialing; then reversing course in 2016 on the plan to force racial discussion with every purchase; Starbucks is now announcing a pause in all social media advertising because... well, they don't want to contribute to hate-speech n' stuff.

Starbucks faces boycott after banning employees from wearing BLM logos over fears 'it could incite violence'.  Starbucks faces a boycott after it publicly got behind the Black Lives Matter movement, but later told employees they're not allowed to wear BLM-inspired t-shirts or pins.  Store managers at the popular coffee chain relayed requests from employees who wanted to wear the clothes, but were told by superiors that it was against the company's dress code.  The managers also were told that BLM swag could potentially incite violence.

The Editor says...
The people who are most likely to be offended by BLM clothing are not the ones who are prone to violence.

Two days later...
Starbucks to allow baristas to wear Black Lives Matter attire and accessories after backlash.  Starbucks said Friday [6/12/2020] that the chain would allow workers to wear attire and accessories highlighting the Black Lives Matter movement, reversing its prior stance after social media users called for boycotts of the company.  Buzzfeed first reported on Wednesday that the coffee chain would not allow its employees to wear Black Lives Matter clothing or accessories, and management justified the decision by saying that such items could be misunderstood and incite violence.  While Starbucks has a policy against wearing personal, political or religious clothing or accessories, workers told Buzzfeed that the company hands out buttons and attire celebrating LGBTQ rights and marriage equality.

Starbucks to close some stores, eliminate seating in all others to slow spread of coronavirus.  In a bid to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, Starbucks will temporarily close some of its North American locations and will shift to a "to-go" model at the rest of its more than 10,000 North American stores.  The closures, which were announced and implemented Sunday afternoon, will last at least two weeks and will affect company-operated stores in high-risk areas such as Seattle and New York, with a high number of cases of COVID-19, the highly contagious illness caused by the coronavirus, the company said in a statement Sunday afternoon [3/15/2020].

Starbucks Learns the Cost of Virtue-Signaling.  Everyone remembers how Starbucks responded to allegations of systemic racism by closing down for a whole day of penance (which meant company-wide sensitivity training) followed by the decision that they would open all their locations — and most especially their bathrooms — to anyone without requiring a product purchase.  In other words, it was the equivalent of putting out signs saying, "Loitering Welcome Here."  As they say on the Interwebs, you'll never guess what happened next!  Actually, you don't need to guess, but in case you're curious, we have some social science on the question, in the form of a paper from two researchers at Boston College and one at the University of Texas, recently posted to the Social Science Research Network.  The paper is entitled "The Perils of Private Provision of Public Goods."

The Perils of Private Provision of Public Goods.  Abstract:  In May 2018, in response to protests, Starbucks changed its policies nationwide to allow anybody to sit in their stores and use the bathroom without making a purchase.  Using a large panel of anonymized cellphone location data, we estimate that the policy led to a 7.3% decline in store attendance at Starbucks locations relative to other nearby coffee shops and restaurants.  This decline cannot be calculated from Starbucks' public disclosures, which lack the comparison group of other coffee shops.  The decline in visits is around 84% larger for stores located near homeless shelters.  The policy also affected the intensive margin of demand: remaining customers spent 4.1% less time in Starbucks relative to nearby coffee shops after the policy enactment.  Wealthier customers reduced their visits more, but black and white customers were equally deterred.

Starbucks Serves Transgenderism With Their Coffee in New Commercial.  In the endless steamroll of multinational "woke" corporations pushing the transgender agenda, a new Starbucks commercial in the United Kingdom that has gone viral pushes the transgender narrative using a coffee cup and a barista.  It begins with a transgendered character born with the name "Gemma."  Gemma is "transitioning" to a "male" and intends to be called, "James."  Her birth name of "Gemma" is still listed in public records so that is the name she is referred to by.  Her father also introduces her by the name he has always known her by.  But the new gender ideology does not allow people to react in ways that are natural to human beings.  It allows no forgiveness for the crime of "misgendering."  (In the U.K., a young man with Asperger's was literally charged with a "hate crime" for asking a trans person if they were a man or a woman.)

Starbucks announces new environmental goals after Post trash raid.  Starbucks is brewing up a new environmental plan.  After a New York Post investigation showing rampant food waste at company stores across New York City, the coffee shop empire has rolled out a new set of ambitious green goals.  "Today, more than ever, the world needs leadership in environmental sustainability," Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson said in a statement last week.  "Our aspiration is to become resource positive — storing more carbon than we emit, eliminating waste, and providing more clean freshwater than we use."  Johnson said the company would commit to 50% reductions in carbon emissions, landfill waste and water withdrawal by 2030 — a date the company noted was a "preliminary target."

Man dies after trying to stop thief who stole his laptop at Starbucks.  A California man died of his injuries when he tried to stop a thief who snatched his laptop from a local Starbucks, according to local reports.  The unidentified victim was working on his computer at an east Oakland branch of the coffee chain Tuesday morning — when someone grabbed the device and ran to a nearby SUV, authorities told KTVU.  It was unclear if a driver was waiting in the car.

Starbucks plans to open 85 'community stores' in poor neighborhoods — where its lattes will cost $2.25 — to 'boost local economies'.  Starbucks is launching a pivotal expansion of their community store initiative to add dozens of coffee shops to poor neighborhoods, the company revealed on Thursday [1/16/2020].  According to a press statement, the Seattle-based coffee chain plans to open or remodel 85 stores by 2025 in various rural and urban communities across the country.  Each location will hire local staff, including construction crews and artists, and will have community event spaces.

Starbucks Is Adding Needle-Disposal Boxes to Bathrooms.  Starbucks Corp. — recognizing it's often a safe space for the most vulnerable visitors — has installed needle-disposal boxes in some locations.  The coffee giant started adding the boxes in several U.S. markets this January after receiving requests from employees last year, a spokeswoman said.  It will add them to any store where employees cite a need, she said.  "We are always working with and listening to our partners for ways we can better support them when it comes to issues like these," Starbucks said in an email, citing "scary situations" and a need to ensure its workers "are out of harm's way."

Starbucks: Employee Who Wrote 'PIG' on Police Officer's Cup Is 'No Longer a Partner'.  An Oklahoma police chief says an officer bought Starbucks for 911 dispatchers working on Thanksgiving only to find that the word "PIG" was printed on the cups' labels.

Fired Starbucks manager Lola Rose considering lawsuit over 'PIG' cup fallout.  The Starbucks manager who was fired when a cop at her shop received an order labeled "PIG" is considering suing the coffee giant for making her a "martyr," she told The [New York] Post on Wednesday [12/4/2019].  Lola Rose, a shift supervisor at the Glenpool, Oklahoma, location, is determined to "clear her name" after she claims the chain wrongfully terminated her in response to the coffee cup controversy.  "I really feel like I was made out to be a martyr," Rose, 21, said during an exclusive interview.

Oklahoma police officer gets a Starbucks cup labeled 'Pig'.  A police officer in Oklahoma was dismayed when he bought a coffee at the local Starbucks on Thanksgiving and noticed the name on the label was "Pig."  The chief of police the Kiefer, Okla. said one of his officers trekked to Starbucks to get some java for a dispatcher when he received the insulting label.  "What irks me is the absolute and total disrespect for a police officer who, instead of being home with family and enjoying a meal and a football game, is patrolling his little town," Chief Johnny O'Mara said in a Facebook post that included an image of the "Pig" coffee cup.

Palo Alto woman loses job after confronting MAGA-hat-wearing Starbucks customer.  A woman who said she confronted a man for wearing a red "Make America Great Again" hat inside a Palo Alto Starbucks was fired from her job at a nearby music store.  On Monday [4/1/2019], Rebecca Parker Mankey took pictures of a man wearing a MAGA hat, and wrote in a Facebook post that she "called the entire Starbucks to order and yelled at him."  "He will never forget me and will think seriously about wearing that hat in my town ever again," she wrote.  "If you see him in this hat, please confront him.  You do not want to be the person who didn't speak up as we slipped into fascism."

A Palo Alto Woman Harassed An Elderly Jewish Man In A MAGA Hat And Vowed To Get Him Fired (She Was Fired).  How many times have we seen this?  Some woke person gets worked up over someone else wearing a hat that shows their support for Trump and decides to go nuts in public.  It happened again yesterday in Palo Alto, California.  A 74-year-old Jewish man named Victor was wearing the hat in a Starbucks when a woman he didn't know approached him and started shouting.

A Plea for Solidarity with People Who Don't Order Stuff at Starbucks.  What the late Lionel Trilling used to call the liberal imagination was captured by the plight of two black men who went to a Philadelphia Starbucks and didn't order anything.  The company said 8,000 Starbucks stores would close for sensitivity training and the conscience of an anguished world pulsated with guilt and grief over the arrest of the two men, whose only offense was to stand there.  The two men were exactly right:  The right thing to do in Starbucks is not to order anything, because the coffee is disgusting.  Starbucks' response, to be sure, was incommensurate with the problem:  Rather than subject their employees to the ritual farce of sensitivity training, the company should spend money on high-quality coffee beans, and roast them lightly rather than burn them into acidic volcanic ash.

Starbucks apologizes after two uniformed deputies in California claim they were refused service.  Another controversy is brewing for Starbucks as the coffee giant apologized to two deputies in California after they claimed employees at the retailer refused to serve them on Thursday night [12/12/2019].  The incident happened at Starbucks in Riverside County near University of California, Riverside when employees allegedly ignored the uniformed deputies for around five minutes and did not offer to serve them.

Starbucks relaxes its dress code and allows staff to wear facial piercings.  Starbucks has adjusted its dress code allowing its baristas to wear facial piercings.  The facial piercings must be no larger than the size of a dime.  Previously, workers were allowed a small nose stud, but septum piercings or rings were not permitted.

Starbucks' open bathroom policy may be hurting foot traffic, new study finds.  Since opening its bathroom doors to the public in the wake of a controversial incident in Philadelphia, the coffee giant has seen a 6.8% drop in store attendance per month relative to other coffee shops nearby, according to the findings of a joint study from the University of Texas at Dallas and Boston College.  "When you throw open the policy to let people come in and just use the bathrooms and the tables, maybe people come in and find the bathrooms are dirty, and the tables are crowded," David Solomon, Assistant Professor at Boston College Carroll School of Management, told YFi PM.  "And so they don't buy the coffee as well."

Starbucks learns the price of virtue-signaling, now must install needle-disposal boxes in bathrooms 'open to all'.  The expression "clueless liberal" now has an emblem:  the Starbucks logo.  The coffee chain has discovered what anyone who understands human nature could have predicted — as many of us did.  When the chain announced last May that it was opening its bathrooms to non-customers and allowing them to stay in its stores as long as they want without paying for anything, it was utterly predictable that all sorts of troubled people with nowhere else to shoot up, turn tricks, or bathe would start using the restrooms of the virtue-signaling chain.

Remember When Starbucks Caved And Opened Their Bathrooms To Non-Customers?  Here's How That Worked Out.  There are so many contrived outrages in a given week, let alone a year, that it can be hard to recall any individual instance of outrage after it has already passed.  But the infamous Starbucks bathroom outrage was so phony, so absurd, and so disconnected from anything resembling logic or reason, that it deserves to be remembered.

Drugs and syringes have become a problem in Starbucks bathrooms.  Starbucks is installing boxes for safe disposal of syringes in the bathrooms of certain locations, following workers' reports of discarded needles and sometimes concerning conditions.  The coffee giant is exploring remedies after employees expressed fears about being pricked by uncapped needles and experiencing related health risks.  Starbucks is testing solutions, including installing sharps-disposal boxes, using heavier-duty trash bags to prevent needle pokes, and removing trash cans from certain bathrooms.

Starbucks' new bathroom policy not working out as hoped.  It has been 7 months since the famous purveyor of caffeinated confection, Starbucks, declared their bathrooms "open to the public" without the need to purchase their products.  Data suggests that the virtue signaling isn't working out as well as hoped by the corporate leaders.  A New York Post team investigated several Manhattan bathrooms and found that there wasn't an open stall.

Starbucks bathrooms may be open to all, but good luck finding a free stall.  Seven months after the coffee kingdom declared its toilets open to all — no purchase necessary! — visitors who hear nature's call are finding it isn't always easy to lighten their loads.  Finding a usable Starbucks toilet in the Big Apple might actually have gotten harder since last spring's announcement — and not just for non-customers.  Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson declared the open-toilets policy after two black men were infamously arrested in a Philadelphia Starbucks.  They asked to used the toilet and were told it was for customers only.  When they sat to wait for a friend, they were handcuffed and charged with "trespassing."  But a [New York] Post survey found some supposedly liberated loos in different Manhattan neighborhoods closed to everyone.

Will they also provide clean needles?
Starbucks chairman announces free bathrooms and table space for the homeless.  The ever well meaning Starbucks chairman, Howie Schultz, more terrified of bad publicity and claims of racism than anything in the world, has just announced a rather customer-unfriendly policy of opening Starbucks bathrooms (as well as table space) to all comers, including people who won't spring for a $4 cup of coffee. [...] If you open the bathrooms to all comers, including non-paying customers, you're turning Starbucks into a public bathroom.  How stupid do you think we are?  For those of us who do buy Starbucks coffee, we know what this policy change means:  an open invitation to the homeless to bring in hepatitis, trash, used syringes, solicitations for spare change, and all the other detritus of their uncured condition to Starbucks bathrooms.

Scenes From a Starbucks.  When I quit smoking, coffee replaced cigarettes and I've been frequenting a Starbucks in downtown Minneapolis twice a day since November, 2017.  One day in March 2018, I couldn't.  The branch, like every other one nationwide, had closed so staff could be trained in some sort of 'social justice' thing after some guys were kicked out of a Starbucks in Philadelphia for not buying anything.  Starbucks' response was to make their branches 'safe spaces' for anyone, whether they had bought anything or not.  At that point, Starbucks stopped being a chain of coffee shops and turned into a network of public urinals and flop houses with a coffee bar attached.

The Wokening of Starbucks.  Over at the Powerline blog John Hinderaker shows us what happened to his friendly neighborhood Starbucks when the company decided to enhance its awareness of social justice.  The Starbucks in question is located in beautiful, downtown Minneapolis.  The transmogrification of Starbucks began in March, 2018.

Starbucks says anti-bias training hurt sales.  Starbucks officials said closing its stores nationwide for an afternoon in May to conduct anti-bias training impacted it sales over the past quarter.  The Associated Press reported Thursday that officials said shutting down the stores for the day lowered comparable-store sales by less than half a percent.  Starbucks held the training after an employee at a Philadelphia store called police on two black men who were at the store but did not order anything.

No purchase required to sit in Starbucks cafes or use the bathroom.  Starbucks will allow people to sit in its cafes and use its bathrooms — even if they don't buy anything.  The new policy, announced on Saturday [5/19/2018], comes five weeks after two black men were arrested at a Philadelphia store after one asked to use the bathroom before he had made a purchase.

Starbucks drops Jewish group from bias training.  Bowing to pressure from African-American activists, Starbucks excluded the Anti-Defamation League from an upcoming daylong anti-bias training session.  The ADL, whose mission is to fight anti-Semitism, will play an advisory role in the company's long-term efforts to combat discrimination, Jaime Riley, a Starbucks spokeswoman, told POLITICO Monday [4/30/2018].  But the group won't help develop the curriculum for Starbucks' May 29 mandatory anti-bias training, as originally planned.

Starbucks to institute a paper cup 'tax' in the UK.  Starbucks is adding a new fee to the cost of its coffee in the United Kingdom — but only if you use a paper cup.  The ubiquitous coffee company announced a trial run of a 5-pence-per-paper-cup charge in about 25 London locations as a way to "encourage and support" the use of environmentally-friendly multiple-use cups.  Citing "growing concern" about the cost and wastefulness of paper cups, which — despite what many consumers may believe, are not so easy to recycle due to the inner plastic lining — Starbucks said it will study the impact of the new surcharge closely to determine next steps.

Starbucks Crumbles As Investigator Finds 30% Of Coffee Tests Positive.  Many people around the world enjoy iced coffee and other cool drinks from baristas employed by Starbucks, Caffe Nero, and Costa Coffee.  However, they may want to think twice before ordering again.  The BBC's "Watchdog" program performs consumer affairs checks on popular businesses.  Their latest discovery found fecal bacteria in samples from the three popular coffee chains.  Yes, that's right, bacteria that is present in feces is now included with customer's ice at Starbucks, Caffe Nero, and Costa Coffee.  Samples taken from various stores found changeable levels of contamination.  Head of policy at the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Tony Lewis said that the amounts were "concerning."  He added that the bacteria "should not be present at any level — never mind the significant numbers found."

Trump Supporters Call for Boycott After Starbucks CEO Endorses Hillary.  Donald Trump's supporters took to Twitter today [9/8/2016] to call for a boycott of Starbucks after CEO Howard Schultz endorsed Hillary Clinton.

Howard Schultz resignation sparks speculation of presidential bid.  Seattle-based Starbucks Corporation announced Monday that Howard Schultz is leaving the company in three weeks after serving 40 years as as CEO and chairman.  Mr. Schultz, the company said, grew the famous coffee shop chain from 11 stores to more than 28,000 stores in 77 countries during his time in leadership.  "Under Schultz's leadership, Starbucks has delivered a 21,000 percent gain in the value of its stock price since its initial public offering in 1992," the company noted in a statement.  But it is Mr. Schultz's farewell letter which has attracted press attention.  "I set out to build a company that my father, a blue-collar worker and World War II veteran, never had a chance to work for," he wrote in a missive addressed today to past and present Starbucks partners.

Outgoing Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz rips Democrats for veering too far left.  Many leaders in the Democratic Party are veering too far left and overpromising government programs that are not fiscally possible, Howard Schultz told CNBC on Tuesday [6/5/2018].  Without naming names, Schultz said in a "Squawk Box" interview:  "It concerns me that so many voices within the Democratic Party are going so far to the left.  I say to myself, 'How are we going to pay for these things,' in terms of things like single payer [and] people espousing the fact that the government is going to give everyone a job.  I don't think that's realistic."  "I think we got to get away from these falsehoods and start talking about the truth and not false promises" said Schultz, whose Monday announcement that he's stepping down as executive chairman of Starbucks is driving speculation that he may run for president in the 2020 election.

Schultz opts out as Democrats head to N.H..  Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has decided not to pursue running for president, as Democratic candidates headed to New Hampshire for the state's party convention [9/6/2019].

Never Drink Another Starbucks Coffee Again, It Funds Planned Parenthood.  Your tax dollars aren't the only thing supporting Planned Parenthood — proceeds from your daily coffee may be too!  By now, Starbucks's grande agenda on social issues isn't a surprise to anyone, except maybe its CEO.  Yesterday, in an interview with Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo, Kevin Johnson seemed completely oblivious to Starbucks's ongoing relationship with the abortion giant through its matching gift program.  For Johnson, it's been a rocky few months at the head of one of America's biggest brands.  After an embarrassing scandal in Philadelphia, when a local employee had two African Americans arrested for sitting in their shop, the damage control was in full swing.  Starbucks announced it was closing its 8,000 stores to have a "racial-bias education day" for its army of employees.  But, our friend Alveda King says the company will have to do a lot more than that to end Starbucks's bigotry.  In an op-ed that's gone viral, the niece of Martin Luther King, Jr. insists racism has been part of the company's corporate identity long before the PR nightmare in April.

Berkeley coffee shop abruptly closes amid racism controversy.  A coffee shop in Berkeley, the Elmwood Cafe, has closed overnight without warning.  The abrupt closure comes after a famous comedian alleged that a racist incident happened to him at the cafe similar to the recent arrest of two black men in a Philadelphia Starbucks.  On Monday [4/16/2018], famous East Bay comedian W. Kamau Bell recalled on CNN how he says he experienced racism there.

Overview and recap of the 2018 Starbucks story:
Was the Starbucks Incident a Setup?  I think what happened at the Starbucks in Philly doesn't pass the sniff test.  Two black men went in, sat down, and apparently went unnoticed for a period of time until one got up and asked to use the restroom.  When told it was only for customers, he declined the opportunity to purchase something and returned to his associate at their table.  After another unspecified period of time elapsed, the manager, a woman named Holly, asked them to either purchase something or leave.  They said they were waiting for someone, did not want to buy anything, and wouldn't leave.  More time passed, the option was again proffered, and the double-refusal was again the response.  That's when Holly called "the man."  The "screws" arrived and made the same offer as Holly, three times.  And just as many times, it was refused.  As they were slipping on the cuffs to take them to the "big house," the ever-elusive "friend" magically appeared.  You get the picture:  it was a setup.  Why wouldn't the "friend" just buy a cup of Joe so they could all sit down and chant, "No justice, no peace"?  How did he already know not to?  How did he know to soldier on for the cause?  It was a win-win for the unprivileged.  Getting arrested was the goal, but if they weren't arrested when the friend came in, it would validate the claim that white people are treated better than blacks.

Racial Immunity.  Two black dudes went into a Starbucks, refused to order anything, and demanded to jointly use the bathroom.  Per policy, they were asked to leave, and when they wouldn't, the cops were called.  As a result of public outcry ("public" defined in this case as bored leftists looking to jack off on outrage), Starbucks' CEO closed all stores for a day of "diversity and tolerance training," and a new nationwide policy was enacted to ensure that one needn't have to order food or drinks to claim a table at Starbucks, and the bathrooms are now open to all, from the homeless to the [sodomites].  The black dudes were violating Starbucks' (then) policy, but no matter.  Let them do as they please, and don't call the cops.

Fear of the Left:  The Most Powerful Force in America Today.  In the recent case of a Philadelphia Starbucks manager who asked two black men to purchase something before giving them the code to the restroom, Starbucks immediately appeased the left-wing mob.  The company didn't wait until any facts came out; it simply abandoned the manager and announced it would close every U.S. store one day in May to educate all Starbucks employees about "unconscious bias."

Starbucks boots Anti-Defamation League from its self-vaunted 'diversity' program.  The premise was bad, given that the whole thing was triggered by the incident in Philadelphia where two black men opted to go to a Starbucks, sat at a table for hours without ordering so much as a two-dollar cup of coffee, took up table space from paying customers, refused to leave when asked, and then hollered racism when the manager called the cops.  Normal people order some coffee if they want to use the premises.  These guys thought they were special.  But Starbucks decided that it was the bad guy, and it's atoning for its wicked racism by forcing its line employees (such an easy target) to sit through re-education camp, supposedly for all their racist tendencies after one of them got caught following the rules.  Even the black employees will be forced to do it.

Black Coffee:  The Starbucks Story Is Trash.  Two black men walk into a Starbucks — a leftist company that is unlikely to encourage old-fashioned racism — in Philadelphia, a multi-racial city where a Starbucks would be serving people of all colors all day every day without incident.  But these two jokers, according to their own version of events, refused to follow the store rules and make a purchase.  They were asked to leave by the manager, Holly, a "social justice feminist."  When they refused, she called the police and calmly reported, "I have two gentlemen in my cafe that are refusing to make a purchase or leave."  The police arrived and likewise asked the guys to leave and they refused to obey the police. [...] The usual puerile race-mongers showed up to protest and call for boycotts.  The usual puling apologies, firings and Soviet-style re-education followed.

The War On Standards Reaches Coffee Houses.  A Starbucks store is not a public space.  If you aren't going to purchase anything, you have no business being in the store for an extended period of time.  And if a non-purchaser refuses to comply with a request to leave, the best way to enforce the policy is to call the police.  What's the alternative, bouncers?  It's a sad commentary that anyone would even contemplate using Starbucks as a free meeting-ground.  When I meet people at Starbucks, I always purchase something even though I don't drink coffee.  It would never occur to me not to.  Only a strong sense of entitlement, not to mention bad manners, would lead anyone to think he can occupy the store for an extended period of time without paying.

Starbucks goes into full blown surrender mode.  I have worked as a restaurant manager in years past, and as a bartender even longer.  I have had to ask some customers to leave (usually for being loud, obscene, or loitering) establishments a few times.  I have even had to call police a few times when they refused.  On almost every occasion, the people I asked to leave were White.  And those that refused to leave when police told them they must were arrested.  These two men were asked to leave.  They refused, that is why the police were called.  Apparently when the police arrived, the men verbally abused them, and still refused to leave.  Had they left, there would have been no arrest, period.

Eric Holder to Help Starbucks Train Employees For 'Racial Bias Education Day'.  On Tuesday [4/17/2018], Starbucks announced it will be closing 8,000 stores on May 29 so 175,000 employees can attend a training program that will address implicit bias, promote inclusion and help prevent discrimination, NBC reports.  Eric Holder was tapped as one of the 'experts' to assist with training the employees.  That's all you need to know.

Black man demands free Starbucks coffee as 'reparations' — white barista immediately complies.  "I heard ya'll was racist, so I came to get my free coffee," Sharpe says in the video to the white barista taking his order. [...] "That's what I'm talking about!  This is justice," Sharpe says sarcastically.  "This is justice.  This is what I'm talking about."  The barista went onto to offer his choice of milk and flavoring.

Fake Starbucks coupons circulate online promising free coffee for black customers.  Fake Starbucks coupons have begun circulating on social media in the wake of protests over the arrests of two black men who had asked to use a Starbucks restroom.  The coupons, which feature images of Starbucks beverages, the brand's iconic color green and bar codes, appear to offer "people of color" or "African-American heritage" free drinks.  "This is completely false and in no way associated with Starbucks," a Starbucks spokeswoman told CNBC.

Philadelphia Starbucks Arrest Cues Racist Whines.  A couple of thinks here:  (1) Some of the cops at the arrest were black.  (2) All of the patrons protesting the arrest were white.  (3) A woman's voice is heard saying "she said the restrooms were for paying customers.  (4) Are people required to ask permission to use the restroom at Starbucks?  Not that I patronize Starbucks, but, [...] I don't ask to use the restroom.  Not since I graduated high school anyway.  All of this leads to the absurdity of the whole chain shutting down on May 29 for a company wide  re-education   brainwashing  "racial-bias education" training.

Reminder:
Hardly a Stir When Starbucks Denied a Cop.  In 2015, an unnamed Philadelphia police sergeant entered a downtown Philadelphia Starbucks and asked to use the restroom.  He might have been the one who would have responded if that Starbucks were being robbed or its employees or customers were assaulted.  He was told in no uncertain terms that he could not and should find a restroom down the street.

Update:
Black men arrested at Starbucks settle for $1 each, and a promise of $200K for young entrepreneurs program.  Two black men arrested for sitting at a Philadelphia Starbucks without ordering anything settled with the city Wednesday [5/2/2018] for a symbolic $1 each and a promise from officials to set up a $200,000 program for young entrepreneurs.  The men and their lawyer told The Associated Press the settlement was an effort to make sure something positive came out of the incident.  "We thought long and hard about it and we feel like this is the best way to see that change that we want to see," said Donte Robinson, one of those arrested.

Remember when Starbucks just served over-priced, burnt coffee?  If you are in the mood for a high-priced cup of coffee that tastes burnt[,] you'll have to go somewhere other than Starbucks during a three-hour period Tuesday afternoon.  More than 8,000 shops are shuttering for anti-bias training[,] an ill-conceived attempt to restore Starbucks' tarnished liberal image.

Starbucks Baristas Reflect on the Company's Anti-Cop Propaganda Disguised as 'Anti-Bias Training'.  On Tuesday, Starbucks closed their stores across the nation to hold an "anti-bias" training after Donte Robinson and Rashon Nelson, two black men, were arrested for loitering at a Philadelphia store without buying anything.  Multiple Baristas who attended the training told Philadelphia Magazine that the company beat around the bush when discussing racial issues.  "I was really disappointed when I walked out of there because I was expecting so much more," an 18-year-old black woman, pseudonym Tina, said.  According to the woman, Baristas were given a 68-page guide where they were asked to respond to writing prompts with various scenarios.  "It felt like we were off task the entire time because we didn't reflect on the situation itself," the woman said, referring to the incident involving Robinson and Nelson.  "The training materials focused a lot on police brutality, which had nothing to do with the incident that happened."

Starbucks Anti-Bias Training "Missed the Mark Completely," Say Two Philly Baristas.  All eyes were on Starbucks again on Tuesday [5/29/2018] as the corporation shut down 8,000 stores to conduct anti-bias training following the public uproar over a white Starbucks manager calling the police on two black men who were waiting in a store in Philadelphia in April.  Starbucks billed Tuesday's training as "one step" in addressing racial bias, and national reports have called the company's move an "important start."  But for two Philadelphia Starbucks employees I talked to, the training merely "targeted" people of color and exacerbated racial tensions.

Perhaps to offset the cost of running all those de facto homeless shelters...
Starbucks raises its coffee prices 10-20 cents across the U.S..  The price of your morning jolt of caffeine just got a little more grande.  Starbucks has raised the price of its brewed coffee 10 cents to 20 cents at most of its company-owned stores in the U.S. The price for a 12-ounce drink, for example, is now $1.95 to $2.15.  The increase, which differs by market, went into effect Tuesday [6/5/2018].

Who could not have seen this coming?
Starbucks provides weak sales outlook, will close 150 stores.  The Seattle-based company said Tuesday [6/19/2018] it would close 150 underperforming stores in "densely penetrated markets" and slow its rate of store growth.  Starbucks traditionally closes about 50 underperforming locations annually.  Starbucks said it expects same-store sales to grow 1% in its third fiscal quarter of 2017.  Analysts had expected same-store sales to grow 3% in that period.

Starbucks burned by social-justice appeasement as growth stalls, stock plunges.  Starbucks may have appeased progressives with its social-justice workshops and open-bathroom policy, but such moves have failed to caffeinate the company's bottom line.  The coffee giant's stock took a tumble Wednesday [6/20/2018] after CEO Kevin Johnson announced that Starbucks would close 150 company-owned stores next year instead of the expected 50, with an emphasis on underperforming shops in densely populated urban areas, and lowered growth projections.  Mr. Johnson acknowledged that the decision to shut down 8,000 U.S. stores on May 29 for anti-bias training, driven by the high-profile arrests of two black men in Philadelphia, played a role in the company's sluggish second-quarter performance.

Disney/ABC Should Merge with Starbucks and the NFL.  Disney/ABC, Starbucks, and the NFL should merge, as they are this week's prime example of how to drive away customers while engaged in absurd CEO virtue signaling.

How to Fail Racial Sensitivity Training.  In most schools, it begins with an invitation to have a "Courageous Conversation" about race.  Within a few minutes, the white teachers learn they must be courageous enough to admit their own racism and how it is responsible for so much black dysfunction in America.  Tip for the soon to be enlightened 177,000:  If you want to keep your job and think you are not racist, don't let anyone know about it, or you will meet the same fate as the teachers who said the same thing in their seminars.  They get fired.  So there is no conversation — just monologue.  This is too bad, because as your average befuddled white guy, there are so many questions I want to ask, yet so few answers.

Starbucks' Atonement for "Unconscious Bias" Will Not Work.  Corporate executives today know that to keep their jobs and avoid boycotts they must persuade employees to shed supposedly unconscious race and gender biases lurking within their souls.  And though the remedy, known universally as "diversity," promotes teamwork, in practice it constitutes soft totalitarianism, resting on the guiding assumption that to be white and/or male is to be guilty until proven innocent.  Even the appearance of unfairness to nonwhite and female employees, customers and shareholders must be averted.  The justification for this policy is that human prejudices are so ingrained that we're usually not aware of them.  Thus, companies have set up bureaucracies and hired outside consultants who specialize in eradicating "unconscious biases." Company officials, whether enthusiastically or fearfully, routinely weave this principle into hiring, promotion, contracting, advertising and other aspects of company operations.

Starbucks to tell staff 'prejudice is deeply rooted' at anti-bias training.  Starbucks has not offered an estimate of what it will lose in sales during the afternoon closing, but the Philadelphia incident reportedly had a noticeable negative effect on consumer approval. [...] But anti-bias training experts are divided over the efficacy of a single seminar in correcting racial and gender biases.

Will Starbucks become America's largest chain of homeless shelters?  At one level incidents like the one at the Philadelphia Starbucks are minor affairs that are ginned up into major crises by the left-wing outrage machine.  On the other hand, Starbucks' decision throw open its doors to non-customers to use as public gathering places shows just how far things can go when a company decides that placating social justice warriors is more important than satisfying customers.

National Labor Relations Board rules employers wrong to fire profane employees.  In a pair of recent cases, the National Labor Relations Board has ruled against businesses who fired workers who used profanity in the workplace.  In one case, the NLRB ruled that a business shouldn't have fired an employee even though he berated the owner to his face.  In the other, the board ruled that Starbucks was wrong to fire an employee even though he used profanity and got into an altercation with a manager in front of customers.  Big Business has expressed alarm at the NLRB's stance.  In posting on it's website Friday, the Chamber of Commerce wrote that the board was "flat-out undermining the ability of employers to exercise even the most basic principles of running a business."

Starbucks CEO Jumps Off Obamacare Bandwagon.  Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz blasted the implementation of Obamacare on Thursday [10/31/2013], just a month after he voiced his support for the law.

The Starbucks fiasco of 2015

Robert Woodson: If All Whites Moved Out of USA, How Would It Solve Inner-City Problems?  The solution to poverty begins in the neighborhoods and the people affected by it, says Robert Woodson, the founder and president of the Center for Neighborhood Enterprise.  "You always have to begin with a solution in mind," Woodson told CSPAN Tuesday morning in a discussion on poverty.  "I tell people, what is your solution?  If all whites tomorrow were to move to Canada and Europe, tell me how it would affect the black on black crime rate, how would it it affect the out-of-wedlock births, how would it affect the spread of AIDS?  How would it affect those issues?" he asked.

The Chains They Revere.  Why are so many of the young "misguided youth" in Baltimore so badly educated that they can barely speak English? [...] Believe it or not, in 2011, the public education system in Baltimore spent $15,483 per pupil... which was only second to NYC, which spent an incredible $19,770 to basically produce the same wretched results.  Of course, spending $15,483 per pupil is a total waste of money when most of those receiving it drop out of school because they place no value on it[,] just as the shattered "families" they come from see no value in it either, except to use it as an excuse for their failure to make anything out of it.  So there you have it, a complete Democrat run city (for decades) spending a huge amount of money on a public educational system that is totally controlled at every level by a key Democrat base group (the Teachers Union) which has instituted every single "educational reform" advocated by the academic left for the last 40 years[,] and all it has produced is yet another generation of semi-literate and illiterate, violent, utterly un-employable, lumpen-proletariat street thugs who only know how to make incoherent complaints for the cameras about a society they live in, but in which they have no idea how to succeed.

To Thug or Not to Thug.  As I expected, a number of the college students I instruct took exception to the use of the word thug as applied to the individuals who created mayhem and madness in Baltimore last week.  That "their" president used the term was of little import to these students. [...] And with each passing day and with each lawless behavior condoned — even applauded, "there is now a cottage industry dedicated to defending rap music, a group of enablers who glorify hard-core rap as a legitimate art form reflecting the bitter real-life experiences of ghetto inhabitants."  [Cynthia] Tucker pulls no punches when she asserts that "this so-called music and the lifestyle it glorifies is a malignancy destroying black America" and she wonders "[w]hat does it take for mothers and fathers, ministers and teachers, music executives and TV moguls to turn it off?"

Why your Starbucks barista wants to talk about race relations.  This week Starbucks patrons in line for coffee may find themselves waiting for an impromptu discussion on race relations to take place between barista and fellow patrons as part of the new "Race Together" social awareness campaign initiated by CEO Howard Schultz.  The idea is for a barista to write "Race Together" on a customer's cup and then engage that customer in a dialogue about race relations in America.  "When did you first become aware of your race?" is one question a barista might ask a patron who is interested in starting one of these free-range "organic dialogues," according to Starbucks' spokesperson Linda Mills, in a phone interview.

Starbucks' push to make baristas talk about race sounds like it could be disastrous.  Starbucks has launched an initiative to encourage its employees and customers to have conversations about race.  CEO Howard Schultz has given baristas at 12,000 Starbucks locations the option to write the words "Race Together" on customers' cups and begin discussions about race relations.

Starbucks Gentrifies Neighborhoods.  Starbucks stores tend to open in wealthier areas, and those areas see faster home appreciation than other neighborhoods. [...] Gentrification has many benefits, but it can make neighborhoods unaffordable for poor and moderate-income people and families, many of them minorities.

Starbucks Fights Racism; Racism Fights Back.  If you need a conversation starter with your Starbucks' barista, try this:  What's up with all the black mob violence?  Just as the coffee giant announced its employees would be educating their customers about race relations, large-scale episodes of black mob violence were breaking out across the country.  Starting in Minneapolis, where public officials get very, very testy during the rare occasion when anyone asks about black violence in their tolerant city.  "We don't keep track of arrestees by race," said police spokesman William Palmer, which of course is not true.  Not even close.

Curdling the cream in a cup of Starbucks.  Money is nice but it can be distracting.  Captains of industry pile up millions and sometimes imagine that profits makes them prophets, wise and learned in things they don't know anything about.  Everybody wants to be rich.  Not being rich in modern America is a symptom of sloth, indolence and failure.  People who aren't rich have to bear the taunt, "If you're so smart, why ain't you rich?"  But there's a corollary for blowhard capitalists who make millions selling coffee at $4 in a paper cup and a humble cheese sandwich for $5.  "If you're so rich, why ain't you smart?"

Why Is There No Starbucks Coffee House in Selma?  A story from fastcocreate.com showed just what happens when you walk into a Starbucks wanting to engage in a discussion on race.  Pretty much nothing.  The baristas are young kids, just trying to do their job and get through the day, and are kind of embarrassed to even bring it up.  I kind of feel sorry for them.  It is the fault of the mindless executives who put the Starbucks' employees through this, which is why I'm not a big fan of boycotts.

Does Starbucks Want an Honest Conversation?  Each and every time we're hectored to engage in an "honest conversation" about race, it's a sham.  What's wanted is not honesty, but confession of sin by white people and expressions of pain from blacks and others.  Decade after decade, despite vastly diminishing levels of white racism (and the rapid growth of non-white populations), we are told that the old stain of racism continues to poison the lives of minorities.  By encouraging that fiction, Starbucks is subtracting from racial understanding.

Coffee, tea, or a frank discussion on race?  Starbucks is easy to make fun of on its best days, what with the pretentious names for everyday items, never mind the ridiculously high prices for those same everyday items. [...] Howard Schultz, the company's CEO, is launching a new initiative called "Race Together."  Starting March 20, baristas will be encouraged to write "Race Together" on coffee cups "to facilitate a conversation between you and our customers" about their "race journey."  It's ironic.  The Obama years were supposed to usher in an era of racial harmony.  That didn't happen — which presumably is why Schultz feels the need to help mend our racial wounds.  What has happened, however, is that hordes of college graduates, unable to find jobs suitable to their degrees, have ended up toiling away at places like Starbucks.

Starbucks 'Race' Campaign Makes the Company a National Laughingstock.  Has it ever occurred to these soft-headed, guilt-ridden do-gooders that maybe, just maybe, we've been having a "conversation about race" for half a century and, after electing Barack Hussein Obama twice, America is not in the mood for another one?  The fact that the campaign was widely mocked on Twitter and elsewhere was, in fact, a healthy sign that Americans simply don't want to be lectured to on the subject anymore, especially by some barista armed with corporate talking points.

Whose idea was this, and why does (s)he still have a job?
Starbucks Ends Conversation Starters on Race.  The initiative, which began last week, was mocked with such vehemence on social media that the company's senior vice president for global communications deleted his Twitter account because, as he wrote on Medium, he felt "personally attacked in a cascade of negativity."  Some critics said that Starbucks might look first to its own executive team, which they suggested was considerably less diverse than lower-paid staff.  Others felt that a coffee company should not foist such discussions on customers.